It's that time of year when graduation ceremonies seemingly take over the lives of many, whether it's a family member, friend or even yourself.

To assist these new graduates entering the workforce, personal finance website WalletHub released its 2025 list of the best cities to start a career, with Florida dominating the top 10.

“Transitioning out of school and into the workforce can be a difficult and stressful process, but certain cities make things a lot easier than others," WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said. "The best cities for starting a career not only have a lot of job opportunities but also provide substantial income growth potential and satisfying work conditions.

"It’s also important to consider factors such as how fun a city is to live in or how good of a place it is for raising a family, to ensure life satisfaction outside of your career.”

What makes a city better for starting a career than others?

WalletHub officials said they compared the relative market strength and overall livability of more than 180 U.S. cities to help recent college graduates find the best cradles for their budding careers.

To determine these cities, WalletHub compared 182 cities — including the 150 most populated U.S. cities, plus at least two of the most populated cities in each state — across two key dimensions, “Professional Opportunities” and “Quality of Life.” Our sample considers only the city proper in each case and excludes cities in the surrounding metro area.

They add they evaluated the two dimensions using 25 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the most favorable conditions for job-market entrants.

What is the best city in Florida to start a career?

Central Florida's Orlando is the second-best city for starting a career, boasting one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country. WalletHub says it also has the second-highest number of entry-level job openings per capita, along with lots of openings at companies rated 4 or 5 stars.

"People who get a job in Orlando have the potential to experience a lot of income growth, too, as the median household income grows by around 7.6% annually – 19th highest rate in the country. In addition, people in Orlando have higher job satisfaction than people in most other cities," WalletHub says.

It also helps that Orlando is ranked second among the most fun cities in America, so there’s plenty to do when off the clock.

What is the best U.S. city to start a career? Hint — it's close to Florida

Atlanta was declared the best place to start a career, according to WalletHub.

The Georgia city boasts one of the highest growth rates in the median household income, at around 8.2% annually. The median annual household income in Atlanta is already pretty high as well, at nearly $85,400.

In addition, it notes it has a lot of job opportunities at companies that are rated at least 4 out of 5 stars on Glassdoor, along with plentiful entry-level jobs, and people have a high rate of satisfaction with their jobs.

"For people who want to not only start a career but also start their own business, Atlanta ranks as the eighth-best large city. It also ranks fourth among the most fun cities and it's the best city for singles , allowing people who move for their career to also find happiness outside of work."

What are the top 10 U.S. cities to start a career?

Which small Florida city is the best to start a business in?

According to WalletHub, the Southwest Florida city has one of the highest numbers of investors per capita in the country, which improves the chances of startups finding the funding they need. This investment access allowed the number of small businesses in the city to grow by over 22% between 2016 and 2022.

Fort Myers also ranked in the top 100 cities for office space affordability, at $12.20 per square foot, and for the number of startups per capita. Since current businesses are thriving and have access to good capital and low building costs, it’s a great time for startups to "get a piece of the pie."

What is the worst U.S. city to start a career in?

Over 4,500 miles away from Orlando, Hawaii's Pearl City sits at the bottom of WalletHub's ranking in 182nd place.

The city is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in the ʻEwa District and City & County of Honolulu on the island of Oʻahu. As of 2023, it has a population of roughly 45,000.

According to WalletHub, it saw an overall score of 33.2 out of 100, particularly seeing a low score for professional opportunities.